Not Applicable
Not Applicable
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to apparatus that are mountable on motor vehicles, such as pickup trucks, vans, and the like, for moving loads onto and off of the vehicles.
2. Description of the Related Art
Pickup trucks have a cargo bed with a rear tail gate that tilts downward to permit loads to be placed onto the cargo bed for transport. Vans have rear doors which open to provide access to the cargo area so that objects can be placed into and removed from the van. Typically, one or more persons carries the load to and from the pickup truck or van. If the load is relatively heavy or cumbersome for people to carry, a forklift or other type of industrial truck is used to pick the load off the ground, raise it to the height of the bed of the vehicle, and then position the load onto that bed. The industrial truck can be utilized with the reverse process to unload the vehicle. However, there are often situations where an industrial truck is unavailable at the location where it is desired to load or unload the pickup truck or van.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a mechanism which is attached to the vehicle to load and unload objects from the cargo bed. Because such apparatus may occupy some of the cargo space or interfere with the ability to carry certain types of loads for which the apparatus is not required, it is further desirable that the loading and unloading apparatus be easily removable from the vehicle by the user.
An apparatus for loading and unloading objects into and from a vehicle includes a main frame for placement in the vehicle. The main frame has a base frame supporting a pair of spaced apart primary tracks. A pair of extension tracks have couplings that attach the extension tracks to the primary tracks, wherein the extension tracks upon being moved into an operational position are aligned with the extension tracks and project beyond the vehicle. In one embodiment, the couplings enable the extension tracks to be detached from the primary tracks for storage in the vehicle when not in use. In another embodiment, the extension tracks are pivotally connected the primary tracks and divided into a plurality of hinged sections, thereby enabling the extension tracks to be folded into the vehicle when not in use. A plurality of hangers travel along the primary tracks and the extension tracks.
A platform is provided to support the object being loaded or unloaded. An elevator mechanism is mounted to the platform and connected to the plurality of hanger for raising and lowering the platform with respect to the primary tracks and the extension tracks. In the preferred embodiment, the elevator mechanism comprises a plurality of flexible ties each connected to one of the plurality of hangers and wound onto one of a plurality of reels. The flexible ties can comprise woven fabric belts, other types of belts, ropes, cables, wire ropes, chains, and the like. A prime mover, such as an electric motor drives a transmission connected to a plurality of reels thereby providing rotational force to wind and unwind the flexible ties onto and from the reels.
To load an object, the extension tracks are placed into the operational position in which they extend beyond the vehicle. The platform is moved out of the vehicle so that the hangers travel from the primary tracks onto the extension tracks. Then the elevator is operated to lower the platform to the ground. The object to be loaded is placed on the platform and the elevator raises the platform above the height of the vehicle""s floor. The raised platform with the object thereon is pushed into the vehicle during which the hangers travel from the extension tracks back onto the primary tracks. After the platform is positioned inside the vehicle, the elevator is operated to lower the platform onto the vehicle floor. The extension tracks then are either removed and stowed in the vehicle or are folded into the vehicle.
The reverse process is used to unload the object from the vehicle.